Near-shore Arctic Subsea Permafrost in Transition


Contact
Paul.Overduin [ at ] awi.de

Abstract

Models and geophysical data indicate that large areas of the Arctic shelves, as a result of their exposure during the last glacial maximum, are thought to be almost entirely underlain by subsea permafrost from the coastline down to a water depth of about 100 meters. Subsea permafrost is still poorly understood, mainly due to the lack of direct observations. However, it is known to contain gas hydrates, a solid phase composed of water and gases that formed under low-temperature high-pressure conditions. Large volumes of methane in gas hydrate form can be stored within or below the subsea permafrost and the stability of this gas hydrate zone is sustained by the existence of permafrost. Degradation of subsea permafrost and the consequent destabilization of gas hydrates could significantly if not dramatically increase the flux of methane, a potent greenhouse gas, to the atmosphere.



Item Type
Article
Authors
Divisions
Programs
Publication Status
Published
Eprint ID
16506
Cite as
Rachold, V. , Bolshiyanov, D. Y. , Grigoriev, M. N. , Hubberten, H. W. , Junker, R. , Kunitsky, V. V. , Merker, F. , Overduin, P. P. and Schneider, W. (2007): Near-shore Arctic Subsea Permafrost in Transition , EOS: Transactions of the American Geophysical Union, 88 (13), pp. 149-156 .


Download
[thumbnail of Fulltext]
Preview
PDF (Fulltext)
Rac2007a.pdf

Download (466kB) | Preview
Cite this document as:

Share
Add to AnyAdd to TwitterAdd to FacebookAdd to LinkedinAdd to PinterestAdd to Email

Research Platforms
N/A

Campaigns
N/A


Actions
Edit Item Edit Item